Link (Clash)
Changes from Brawl to Clash Link has been given tremendous buffs in order to make him viable for once. His projectiles are improved, his aerial game and mobility are much improved, almost all of his advanced techniques from Brawl remain and he's overall a way more solid character. He's only received a couple of negative changes to compensate for his history in Smash. Magmortar75 is hoping to finally break Link's long-time curse of tiers. Buffs *Link can aim his arrows upward or up forward on the ground by holding the direction while charging the Arrow. The air version can also be aimed down forward or down while charging. *Has his Melee air speed back. *Double jump is higher. Now about the same height as Mr. Game & Watch. Regular jump is about the same height as Bowser. Short hop unchanged. *Link's dash is slightly faster. *Slower fall speed making him slightly more difficult to juggle. *Ground Spin Attack is stronger at all charges, air version is chargeable. It also is capable of traveling much more horizontal distance and has slightly higher vertical reach. *Forward Aerial's first hit is much weaker and is a guaranteed combo into the powerful second hit at most percents, although it overall does less damage. (9%-12% -> 8%-10%) Both hits also come out 2 frames faster each. *Side Strong comes out 4 frames faster (on 11) and lasts 32 frames overall instead of 40. *Up Strong has 3 frames less recovery and does 10% instead of 9%. *Down Strong Meteor Smash hitbox is larger and 2 more active frames are added. *Every hitbox of Dash Attack now does 12% with the blade hitbox knockback. *Down Aerial's landing lag cut in half (now 25 frames instead of 50), can be auto-canceled from full hop height. *Up Aerial has increased knockback, damage (17% clean, 14% late), 5 frames less landing lag. *Link has his Melee Boomerang as the standard one, as such it hits on the way forward and backward. Retains most of it's 64 and Melee properties. The Gale Boomerang is still in with many of it's Brawl applications as the Smash Special version. *Bombs have higher knockback and damage if thrown right before they explode. Nerfs *Tether goes slightly shorter distance *Hero's Bow can now only be used once in the air. Other changes and notes *Link now uses his design from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. All confirmed items for the game that Link uses in Clash as well are also changed to their Skyward Sword design. The exception being that Link uses the Master Sword and not the Skyward Sword in all matches. *Fixed a bug where his Down Throw wouldn't properly damage Jigglypuff on the first hit. Overview Pros Cons Moveset Ground Moves Normals *Neutral Attack: Link does two slashes in front of him ending in a stabbing attack. A fairly fast combo that does ok damage and good knockback, although usually not enough to kill. The range is a bit larger than most jabs since it's a sword attack. The main use you'll find for it is in jab cancels, as the first two hits deliver a little more hitstun than most characters' jabs. You've got a ton of good follow-ups to this attack, be it for additional attacks or to finish off the other fighter. A solid jab and good overall move for Link. **Damage: 4% first hit, 3% second, 5% third, total 12% *Side Strong Attack: Link performs an overhead, one hand slash with the Master Sword. While not the fastest on start-up or the best thing Link has in range, it has quick recovery and good power. Like the jab, it can be used to create some space between fighters and is one of Link's faster moves capable of consistently landing knockouts. Plus during the start-up it covers a fair bit of area above Link. Decent attack. **Damage: 13% *Up Strong Attack: Link slashes with the Master Sword in a rainbow arc right above him. This is a very fast move that covers a good amount of space above Link. At very high percents this can kill, but don't rely on it. The best uses for it are as an anti-air or as a juggling tool; it's great to rack up damage against airborne characters quickly and can lead into an Up Aerial or other attacks. A great move. **Damage: 10% *Down Strong Attack: Link slashes with the Master Sword across the floor. The hitbox at the tip (about 1/3 of the Master Sword) and at Link's body can be used to Meteor Smash. It's difficult to use effectively, but it can easily hit opponents on a ledge. There is a good chance this move will cause a trip. The range is ok and it doesn't start particularly fast, but the hitbox lasts a decent amount of time and it has a really high amount of vertical knockback when you don't hit with the Meteor Smash hitbox. Actually makes a pretty good vertical KO move for the Hero of Time. Overall a solid attack. **Damage: 12% *Dash Attack: Link does a pretty generic running slash. Now does solid damage regardless of where it hits, which is a nice new property. This move will get the opponent in the air for some juggles, but like a lot of dash attacks this is a laughably easy move to punish. You'll probably get more use out of this move by canceling into a long sliding Up Smash which is a lot more useful than this move by itself. Not a move you should forget Link has, but nothing particularly notable. **Damage: 12% Smash Attacks *Side Smash Attack: Link holds his sword back to his head, then slashes forward. Pressing the Attack button again causes Link to do another, stronger slash that is difficult to combo into from the first hit. This move has somewhat misleading start-up as Link doesn't really do much in the start-up animation before the hitbox comes out, so you may find uses for this as a surprise hit. First hit has strongest knockback at tip, second hit at blade's center. The hitbox on this isn't bad, plus it packs a fair bit of power although the really powerful part, the one you want to hit with, is very hard to land even in a combo. Decent attack; not the best one Link has. **Damage First Hit: 15% uncharged, 21% charged (14/20 when not tipped) **Damage Second Hit: 19-20% uncharged, 27-28% charged (17-24% far) *Up Smash Attack: Link slashes at the sky three times consecutively. The overall increased hitstun of Clash means this move almost always connects properly and is very difficult to escape unless placed at the end of an extremely long (30+ hits) string of attacks. It deals good damage if every hit connects and ok knockback, although the recovery isn't the best. Link players, much like in Brawl, will find the best use for this to be as a dashing Up Smash canceled from a Dash Attack, as mentioned above. It lets him get around even faster and thanks to Attack cancels in Clash it lets you easily throw many of Link's projectiles while moving around. It has uses in combos and as anti-air outside of that, but the DACUS is one technique a Link player must know to make the character a true force. **Damage: 4-3-10 uncharged for 17% total, 5-4-14 charged for 23% total *Down Smash Attack: Link crouches and slashes at the ground twice, once in front of him and once behind. This is the fastest Smash Attack Link has and it's very powerful and damaging for a Down Smash, with the traditional good hitbox Dsmashes have. Like a lot of Down Smashes that function like this, it is very difficult to use both hits in a combo. Unlike a lot of moves like it though, the knockback and damage are barely (if at all) modified depending on where it hits. As you would guess, this is a great finishing move and good to pull out anytime the opponent doesn't see it coming. Great attack. **Damage: 16% uncharged, 22% charged Aerial Moves *Neutral Aerial: Link kicks the air, yeah, not the most original attack. This is Link's sex kick that lasts a while but gets progressively weaker as it is out. The entire thing has decent priority which is always a useful property. This move is never strong or damaging at all, but what it lacks in strength it makes up for with excellent speed all around: Fast start-up, fast mid-air recovery, and fast landing lag. Good attack to break missed juggles with, among other uses. **Damage: 9% initial, 7% late *Forward Aerial: Link does two mid-air slashes in front of him while spinning around. This move is one of Link's more modified in that while it does less total damage, the absurdly powerful second hit that everyone wants to connect with but couldn't due to the first hit's knockback is much easier to land. That property makes this a more useful tool than ever before: It's powerful, covers a ton of space right in front of Link, doesn't have horrible (12 isn't the best, but it's not awful) start-up and if you hit with it close to the ground you're usually safe. The damage is still great, too. Overall, just a solid attack in all means, you're going to be looking for ways to land it. **Damage: 8% first hit, 10% second hit, 18% overall *Back Aerial: Link kicks behind him twice. Link's fastest move that can be performed in the air, but also the weakest one in damage and only doing a little more damage than the Neutral if both hits connect. You're not going to want both his to connect regardless, since the landing lag is really small and allows you to easily string more attacks together. Due to the damage this deals, it may effect the damage a bit later with damage scaling, but a follow-up is a follow-up. Also works alright as a spacing attack, and overall isn't too bad. **Damage: 4% first hit, 7% second hit *Up Aerial: Link's Upward Thrust has him point his sword straight up into the air. Start-up time isn't horrible and it has an absolute ton of active frames. It has some sex kick-style properties in that it's power is as it's best when hit with it near the start and it gets weaker from there. The mid-air recover is fairly long though, plus if you land during the animation of it you're pretty much dead. The damage and knockback are both fantastic, and being a disjoint, tends to beat a lot of physical aerials the opponent throws out; makes an alright anti-air move if you need to get high in the sky while doing so. Another ok aerial Link has. **Damage: 17% initial, 14% late *Down Aerial: Link's Downward Thrust has him point the Master Sword down while he stands on it. This is still Link's ultra powerhouse aerial that deals unbelievable knockback and damage when it hits; easily one of the strongest aerial attacks in the game. This comes with the added bonus of bouncing off the opponent if it hits or is shielded, meaning at low percents it's possible to string multiple hits of this attack together. As with many ultra powerful attacks, all that power comes for a price: It's not the most speedy attack Link has in start-up terms, has some recovery on it and, most important, leaves Link a sitting duck when he lands. Nowhere near as much so as in Brawl, but 25 frames of ending lag is really, really unsafe and something that a Link player needs to be careful about. Don't use it near the ground unless you are absolutely CERTAIN it is going to connect. That said, if you can land it (and his various projectiles do provide some set-ups for it) you can really change the game around. **Damage: 22% initial, 18% late, 8% after the bounce *Tether Attack: Link fires his hookshot in the air. This move does not have landing lag and also works really, really well as a tether recovery; second longest tether in the game after Samus's. This move is one of Link's primary tools for controlling aerial space and starting his own and stopping opponent's approaches. If the opponent finds themselves close enough to land an air dodge breaking move on Link, you can also cancel an air dodge into this provided you have a bomb handy. This is just an awesome move, and definitely one of the most important ones Link has. **Damage: 4% first hit, 6% second hit Grabs and Throws *Grab: Link pulls out the hookshot, which will grab characters from a pretty decent distance. This grab also has a fair amount of active frames on it. However, it's speed makes it very difficult to shieldgrab with or tick throw into, and if you miss with it entirely you're essentially eating whatever the opponent feels like. Be careful with this, but hey, it's unblockable. *Pummel: Link beats the opponent's head with the hilt of the Master Sword. Speed is alright. **Damage: 2% *Forward Throw: Link kicks the opponent forward. Not a lot of ways to follow it up; best use is to get opponent off stage or get some breathing room. **Damage: 7% over 2 hits *Back Throw: Link throws the foe back and kicks them. Has less knockback than the Forward one but the same damage value. Use for it is pretty identical to how you'd use a Forward Throw. **Damage: 7% over 2 hits *Up Throw: Link throws the foe above him, then slashes at them with the Master Sword. Link's strongest throw in terms of knockback and much easier to hit with a follow-up attack, usually a projectile. Decent throw. **Damage: 7% over 2 hits *Down Throw: Link does an elbow drop on the now-grounded opponent. This doesn't launch the opponent very high at all ever, making it great to follow up with an upwards attack to start juggles. **Damage: 7% over 2 hits *Air Throw: This will only be done up close; basic right at the range of the base of a hookshot; ie not much. If it does connect, it'll have Link slash the opponent twice. Second hit has decent knockback and can kill slightly below 200%, but otherwise this isn't anything special. **Damage: 7% over 2 hits Special and Super Moves Standard Special Move: Hero's Bow Side Special Move: Boomerang Up Special Move: Spin Attack Down Special Move: Bomb Clash Attack: Final Smash 1: Triforce Slash Final Smash 2: Special Ability: Advancing Guard Other Taunts and Victory Poses On-screen appearance In The Dark Tournament: Adventure Mode Competitive Tactics and Advice Match-ups Advanced techniques Costume Colors Trophies and Profile information Challenge Wall rewards Trivia External links Category: Characters (Clash) Category: The Legend of Zelda universe